ACC Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2022-23 season

There sometimes are debates about who should be No. 1 in the ACC but outside of Durham, it should be unanimous as to who gets the top spot. It’s the team that returns four starters from last season’s national-title game appearance. And as for the projected fifth starter, they may have upgraded.

North Carolina brings back one of the best big men in the country in Armando Bacot. He averaged a team-leading 16.3 ppg and 13.1 rpg last season and set an NCAA record by having six double-doubles in the NCAA Tournament. Bacot had numerous games of either at least 20 points or 20 rebounds (twice had both) and is a National Player of the Year candidate this year.

He’s joined by the backcourt duo of Caleb Love and RJ Davis, who each scored 13.5  and 15.9 ppg respectively, along with 3.6 apg each. Both had games of around 30 points in the Big Dance and are capable of going off on any night. But both, especially Love, can be inefficient from the field. Improvement from there would make one of the top backcourts in the country all the more formidable. And while he’s not much of a scorer, returning wing Leaky Black is viewed as one of the best individual defenders in the ACC and balances out the lineup.

To replace elite stretch forward Brady Manek at the four-spot in Northwestern transfer Pete Nance. The 6’11 big man led his former team with 14.6 ppg and 6.5 rpg and shot 45% from three-point range. He’s not as prolific a scorer as Manek was but is a better defender and can play the five-spot if needed. Add four-star freshman forward Jalen Washington and returning frontcourt players, Dontrez Styles and Puff Johnson, and the Tar Heels will have plenty of depth, regardless of whether or not it’s used.

Head coach Hubert Davis has proven in just one year that he’s ready for the job and the expectations. But it’ll be even higher this upcoming season, as North Carolina will not only be the preseason favorites to win ACC Basketball but the entire sport as a whole.